--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: At MakerBot, we joke that if we were…" description: "\"At MakerBot, we joke that if we were engineers we would still be on our first prototype. There's something about just 'Doing it”iteration is a way of e..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7b/bre-pettis-15884_engineering_at-makerbot-we-joke-that-if-we-were-engi_3090719.png" --- # At MakerBot, we joke that if we were engineers we would… ![“At MakerBot, we joke that if we were engineers we would still be on our first prototype. There's something about just 'Doing it”iteration is a way of engineering.” quote by Bre Pettis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7b/bre-pettis-15884_engineering_at-makerbot-we-joke-that-if-we-were-engi_3090719.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7b/bre-pettis-15884_engineering_at-makerbot-we-joke-that-if-we-were-engi_3090719.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7b/bre-pettis-15884_engineering_at-makerbot-we-joke-that-if-we-were-engi_3090719.png) > “At MakerBot, we joke that if we were engineers we would still be on our first prototype. There's something about just 'Doing it”iteration is a way of engineering.” [Bre Pettis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bre-pettis/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Iterative action—doing and refining—is core to engineering and creativity. **In simple terms:** Keep building and improving. Key Takeaway Iterate quickly, learn fast. Themes innovation iteration engineering Mood enthusiastic determined Type motivational practical When to use this quote - product design - startup culture - creative problem solving Key Concepts prototype development learning by doing Questions to Reflect On - What small prototype can you build today? - How do you balance speed and quality? A Different Perspective Rapid iteration can waste resources without clear goals. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Engineering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/engineering/) [Engineers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/engineers/) [Jokes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jokes/) ## Related quotes > [As our domestic fowls are said to have their original in the wild pheasant of India, so our domestic thoughts have their prototypes in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/as-our-domestic-fowls-are-said-to-have-their-original-in-the-wild/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [It may also be pertinent to ask whether a greater effort in the less expensive basic stages of research may not lead to reductions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-tower-waterman/it-may-also-be-pertinent-to-ask-whether-a-greater-effort-in-the-less/) Alan Tower Waterman > [I think there's a prototype we're all looking for, whether it's Brett Favre or Troy Aikman. And everyone's got that picture in their mind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-payton/i-think-there-s-a-prototype-we-re-all-looking-for-whether-it-s-brett/) [Sean Payton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-payton/) > [An MBA is a great degree for career paths like investment banking, finance, consulting, and large companies. An MBA is not necessarily the right…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-kawasaki/an-mba-is-a-great-degree-for-career-paths-like-investment-banking/) [Guy Kawasaki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-kawasaki/) > [I had to learn everything about manufacturing, patents and how to run a business, and eventually I came up with an prototype that worked.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melissa-george/i-had-to-learn-everything-about-manufacturing-patents-and-how-to-run/) [Melissa George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melissa-george/) > [As a writer, I always think about who my prototype actors are, in my brain. It's helpful, as a writer, to think about that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlton-cuse/as-a-writer-i-always-think-about-who-my-prototype-actors-are-in-my/) [Carlton Cuse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlton-cuse/) > [The idea of an e-book has been around since the late 1970s, when researchers at Xerox PARC got on the case. Their prototype used…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-platt/the-idea-of-an-e-book-has-been-around-since-the-late-1970s-when/) [Charles Platt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-platt/) > [I want to encourage other people to try to discover who they are, not to try to fit into some superficial prototype of what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-norman/i-want-to-encourage-other-people-to-try-to-discover-who-they-are-not/) [Larry Norman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-norman/) > [The first album is a classic record and I think the prototype of a sound that no one else does.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-valentine/the-first-album-is-a-classic-record-and-i-think-the-prototype-of-a/) [Kathy Valentine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathy-valentine/) > [Sometimes I suspect that there are two prototypes of philosophers who write about humans - I call them "celestials" and "terrestrials", without implying that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nomy-arpaly/sometimes-i-suspect-that-there-are-two-prototypes-of-philosophers-who/) [Nomy Arpaly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nomy-arpaly/) > [Everything about my journey to get Spanx off the ground entailed me having to be a salesperson - from going to the hosiery mills…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-blakely/everything-about-my-journey-to-get-spanx-off-the-ground-entailed-me/) [Sara Blakely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-blakely/) > [A source of strength in the early days was that groups in various parts of the world were prepared to construct experimental computers without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-wilkes/a-source-of-strength-in-the-early-days-was-that-groups-in-various/) [Maurice Wilkes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-wilkes/) > [This is another lie. We are only seeking Man. We have no need of other worlds. A single world, our own, suffices us; but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanislaw-lem/this-is-another-lie-we-are-only-seeking-man-we-have-no-need-of-other/) [Stanislaw Lem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanislaw-lem/) > [“the constructor always has a prototype property. More”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-freeman/the-constructor-always-has-a-prototype-property-more/) [Eric Freeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-freeman/) > [Today is what's thought about long ago. Now today we have to project, think, experiment, prototype the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hartmut-esslinger/today-is-what-s-thought-about-long-ago-now-today-we-have-to-project/) [Hartmut Esslinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hartmut-esslinger/) ## More by Bre Pettis > [Learn how a 3D printer works. Get inspired. Make your own stuff. It is a wonderful time to be innovative. Connect things together. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bre-pettis/learn-how-a-3d-printer-works-get-inspired-make-your-own-stuff-it-is-a/) [Bre Pettis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bre-pettis/) > [Our intention is that people use MakerBots to have a positive impact on the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bre-pettis/our-intention-is-that-people-use-makerbots-to-have-a-positive-impact/) [Bre Pettis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bre-pettis/) > [It makes me sad when I see things that are just the same technology; you aren't passing the technology forward.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bre-pettis/it-makes-me-sad-when-i-see-things-that-are-just-the-same-technology/) [Bre Pettis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bre-pettis/) > [You can go from creating the design on your iPad to making the object on your MakerBot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bre-pettis/you-can-go-from-creating-the-design-on-your-ipad-to-making-the-object/) [Bre Pettis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bre-pettis/) > [I've watched with amazement as Local Motors has pioneered a co-creation and micro-manufacturing model that has democratized the development and production of complex machines,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bre-pettis/i-ve-watched-with-amazement-as-local-motors-has-pioneered-a-co/) [Bre Pettis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bre-pettis/) > [We wanted people to 3-D-print anything, not just more 3-D printers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bre-pettis/we-wanted-people-to-3-d-print-anything-not-just-more-3-d-printers/) [Bre Pettis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bre-pettis/) > [That's the beauty of living in New York City is that a good chunk of the media is here and willing to drink with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bre-pettis/that-s-the-beauty-of-living-in-new-york-city-is-that-a-good-chunk-of/) [Bre Pettis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bre-pettis/) > [I like to make things. It's been part of my identity since I was a kid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bre-pettis/i-like-to-make-things-it-s-been-part-of-my-identity-since-i-was-a-kid/) [Bre Pettis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bre-pettis/) > [Customized jewelry is one of my targets with Bold Machines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bre-pettis/customized-jewelry-is-one-of-my-targets-with-bold-machines/) [Bre Pettis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bre-pettis/) > [Done is the engine of more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bre-pettis/done-is-the-engine-of-more/) [Bre Pettis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bre-pettis/) > [The self-driving car is coming. And right now, our best supply of organs come from car accidents... Once we have self-driving cars, we can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bre-pettis/the-self-driving-car-is-coming-and-right-now-our-best-supply-of/) [Bre Pettis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bre-pettis/) > [The people who are getting 3-D printers at home are pioneers, kind of like the people who bought Apple IIs in 1981. Adults are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bre-pettis/the-people-who-are-getting-3-d-printers-at-home-are-pioneers-kind-of/) [Bre Pettis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bre-pettis/) > [We got involved with the RepRap Project, a community focused on making 3-D printers that could make copies of themselves and help create a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bre-pettis/we-got-involved-with-the-reprap-project-a-community-focused-on-making/) [Bre Pettis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bre-pettis/) > [My parents had a software company making children's software for the Apple II+, Commodore 64 and Acorn computers. They hired these teenagers to program…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bre-pettis/my-parents-had-a-software-company-making-children-s-software-for-the/) [Bre Pettis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bre-pettis/) > [There was a tangible sense of potential as we packed them up. 'We're giving people 3-D printers that they can afford. What are they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bre-pettis/there-was-a-tangible-sense-of-potential-as-we-packed-them-up-we-re/) [Bre Pettis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bre-pettis/) [Explore all 41 Bre Pettis quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bre-pettis/) ## More Engineering quotes > [The bones of my architecture are very much related to the structure, to the physical fact of how a building can stand up; it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/santiago-calatrava/the-bones-of-my-architecture-are-very-much-related-to-the-structure/) [Santiago Calatrava](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/santiago-calatrava/) > [“Nothing is easier than yesterday's solutions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-sperry/nothing-is-easier-than-yesterday-s-solutions/) Roger Sperry > [Design is not making beauty, beauty emerges from selection, affinities, integration, love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-kahn/design-is-not-making-beauty-beauty-emerges-from-selection-affinities/) [Louis Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-kahn/) > [Batley and Spen has a high proportion of people working in manufacturing, and we can boast the full range of industries, including high-skilled, precision…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jo-cox/batley-and-spen-has-a-high-proportion-of-people-working-in/) [Jo Cox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jo-cox/) > [I design some of my own clothes now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiernan-shipka/i-design-some-of-my-own-clothes-now/) [Kiernan Shipka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiernan-shipka/) > [Design is a very personal thing. It's like art. Your personal choice plays a big role.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gauri-khan/design-is-a-very-personal-thing-it-s-like-art-your-personal-choice/) [Gauri Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gauri-khan/) > [Worship isn't destructive, Martin. I know that. I don't. I only know it's the core of his life. What else has he got? He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-shaffer/worship-isn-t-destructive-martin-i-know-that-i-don-t-i-only-know-it-s/) [Peter Shaffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-shaffer/) > [ Leave a cavity behind the \[wall\] facings, and on the inside build walls two feet thick, made of red dimension stone or burnt brick… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-vitruvius-pollio/leave-a-cavity-behind-the-wall-facings-and-on-the-inside-build-walls/) [Marcus Vitruvius Pollio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-vitruvius-pollio/) > [Our guiding principle was that design is neither an intellectual nor a material affair, but simply an integral part of the stuff of life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-gropius/our-guiding-principle-was-that-design-is-neither-an-intellectual-nor/) [Walter Gropius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-gropius/) > [Design certainly has a cosmetic, aesthetic aim. It always aims at making things beautiful. But relevance is just as important. I often say, 'If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yves-behar/design-certainly-has-a-cosmetic-aesthetic-aim-it-always-aims-at/) [Yves Behar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yves-behar/) > [I think the ethics and morals of genetic engineering are very complicated. It intrigues me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-spottiswoode/i-think-the-ethics-and-morals-of-genetic-engineering-are-very/) [Roger Spottiswoode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-spottiswoode/) > [Some architects have a preconceived notion of what a building should be](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-w-fentress/some-architects-have-a-preconceived-notion-of-what-a-building-should/) [Curtis W. Fentress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-w-fentress/) > [My objective is to design a space that nobody else can come up with while using the material that anyone can use.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tadao-ando/my-objective-is-to-design-a-space-that-nobody-else-can-come-up-with/) [Tadao Ando](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tadao-ando/) > [Man's endeavour to cross even the most difficult terrain with railway lines has produced some of the most stunning marvels of engineering of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/prashant-bhushan/man-s-endeavour-to-cross-even-the-most-difficult-terrain-with-railway/) [Prashant Bhushan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/prashant-bhushan/) > [Of course design is about problem solving, but I cannot resist adding something personal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wim-crouwel/of-course-design-is-about-problem-solving-but-i-cannot-resist-adding/) [Wim Crouwel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wim-crouwel/) [Browse all 3,003 Engineering quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/engineering/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "At MakerBot, we joke that if we were engineers we would still be on our first prototype. 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